LAS VEGAS — For the second consecutive year a Texas Longhorn found himself in a playoff for the Southern Highlands Collegiate individual title.
This year, he came out on top.
Texas sophomore Parker Coody claimed his first collegiate win on Tuesday, defeating USC freshman Yuxin Lin, who held a five-shot lead entering the final round.
Coody shot a 5-under 67 in the final round, making five birdies on the back nine, including a clutch birdie on the 18th hole in regulation to force the playoff. He won with a par in the first playoff hole.
SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS: Team leaderboard | Individual
“I just started playing well,” Coody said of his performance down the stretch Tuesday. “I did the same thing yesterday. I knew if had any chance I had to finish strong and luckily I did. The rest is history.”
With the win, Coody earns an exemption to the PGA Tour’s 2020 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, held at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas in October.
“(The win) does great things for my confidence,” Coody said about his first win. “From junior golf to now I hadn’t really played the way I wanted to. This is a great start.”
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Last year UNLV’s Jack Trent beat Texas’ Cole Hammer in three playoff holes.
In the team competition, USC was the only team under par after a blustery 36 holes and entered the final round with a dominant nine-shot lead. The Trojans gave three shots back to the field, allowing Texas and Texas Tech to climb into contention. A Cameron Henry birdie on No. 18 gave USC a cushion with one group to play, propelling the Trojans to their first win of the season.
Interesting enough, Henry played the entire week without using his driver. By choice.
“I feel so confident with my 3-wood, it only goes 10 yards shorter than most guys out here with drives, and I feel like I can put it in play every time,” said Henry, who also gave a shoutout to his “little cheddar hybrid.”
The Longhorns shot 4 under as a team Tuesday to finish second, just two shots back. Texas Tech was the low team of the day, shooting 7 under to finish in third at even par. Florida finished fourth at 6 over, with Pepperdine and UCLA T-5 at 9 over.
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